Human intelligence

"What will be the consequences, in the medium and long term, of new digital technologies?"
These are the "urgent" questions that Pope Francis posed at the beginning of his message for the LVII World Day of Peace on 1 January 2024 dedicated to the specific relationship between Artificial Intelligence (AI) and peace.
Current developments in AI require serious and detailed reflection which must deal with some fundamental difficulties. «To date, there is no univocal definition of it in the world of science and technology. The term itself, which has now entered common language, embraces a variety of sciences, theories and techniques aimed at ensuring that machines reproduce or imitate, in their functioning, the cognitive abilities of human beings. Speaking in the plural of "forms of intelligence" can help to underline above all the unbridgeable gap that exists between these systems, however surprising and powerful, and the human person. […] Artificial intelligence, therefore, must be understood as a galaxy of different realities and we cannot assume a priori that its development will make a beneficial contribution to the future of humanity and to peace between peoples."

Francis underlines how new technologies do not only have a merely scientific relevance, but have a major impact on the entire human sphere: it is therefore increasingly necessary to accompany technological development with ethical reflection because «Fundamental respect for human dignity postulates to refuse that the uniqueness of the person is identified with a set of data. Algorithms must not be allowed to determine how we understand human rights, to set aside the essential values of compassion, mercy and forgiveness, or to eliminate the possibility of an individual changing and leaving the past behind." Algorithms cannot undermine human freedom, cage the person in their previous behaviors and predict future ones in a purely deterministic sense.

Above all, a commitment will be needed at multiple levels, from international organizations to individual governments, from public opinion to simple individuals, so that AI is not used to build increasingly refined and lethal instruments of death, but becomes an opportunity to generate new opportunities for growth and justice: «From a more positive perspective, if AI were used to promote integral human development, it could introduce important innovations in agriculture, education and culture, an improvement in the level of life of entire nations and peoples, the growth of human fraternity and social friendship".

Risks and opportunities, lights and shadows on AI and new technologies.
It is difficult to orient ourselves, but we have the possibility of not getting lost if we keep the bar fixed in the direction of human dignity: «The intrinsic dignity of every person and the brotherhood that binds us as members of the one human family must be at the basis of the development of new technologies and serve as indisputable criteria for evaluating them before their use, so that digital progress can take place with respect for justice and contribute to the cause of peace." Otherwise it won't be progress…


By the editorial staff
NPFOCUS
NP March 2024

The full text of Pope Francis' message:
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/peace/documents/20231208-messaggio-57giornatamondiale-pace2024.html